VX2026 PROGRAM
19th Annual VerdeXchange Marketmakers Conference
May 31–June 3, 2026 · Millennium Biltmore Hotel · Los Angeles
⚠ Subject to Change
SUNDAY, MAY 31
4:30 PM – 6:30 PM VX26 VIP Orientation Reception — Co-Host | CG Japan (By Invitation)
6:45 PM – 9:00 PM VX/Mayer Brown/Stantec VIP Dinner — Los Angeles (By Invitation)
MONDAY, JUNE 1
7:00 AM · Doors Open: Welcome to VX26 (Crystal Ballroom)
Speakers: Stephen Cheung (President & CEO, LAEDC); David Abel (Chairman, VerdeXchange)
7:10–8:10 AM — EIS: The Middle East Energy & Security Briefing (Breakfast) — By Invitation (Tiffany Room)
8:20–9:10 AM · PLENARY 1: Infrastructure in Transition: Can Wise Regulation and Technology Solve Systemic Infrastructure Challenges? (Crystal Ballroom)
Moderator: Arnab Pal (Executive Director, Deploy Action)
Panel: Siva Gunda (Commissioner, California Energy Commission); Christine Harada (Commissioner, California Public Utilities Commission); Shinjini Menon (SVP, Southern California Edison); Allan Marks (President, Board of Commissioners, LADWP)
9:15–9:55 AM · PLENARY 2: Disasters: Preparedness, Response, & Resiliency —How Do We Better Respond? (Crystal Ballroom)
Moderator: Jim Kelly (Director, S&C Electric)
Featured: Mark Pestrella (Director, Los Angeles County Public Works)
Panel: Shivaji Deshmukh (GM, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California); David Nahai (Chair, LA Regional Water Quality Control Board)
10:05–10:55 AM · Concurrent Sessions
What's Taking So Damn Long? Fixing Energy Project Permitting (Roman)
Moderator: Jim Kelly (Director, S&C Electric)
Panelists: Noemi Gallardo (Commissioner, CEC); Jason Rondou (Interim COO, LADWP); Christine Harada (Commissioner, CPUC); Brianna Pilkinton (Senior Principal, Stantec)Local and Regional Responses to Drought, Flood, & Emergency Preparedness (Grecian)
Moderator: Nancy Sutley (Board Vice Chair, MWDSC)
Panelists: Jacob Lipa (Founder and Principal, Lipa Consulting); Liz Crosson* (Chief Sustainability Officer, MWDSC)Climate Districts for Disaster Recovery — PCH as the Common Denominator (Corinthian)
Moderator: Larry Kosmont (Chairman &CEO, Kosmont Companies)
Panelists: Joe Irvin (City Manager, Malibu); Aaron Ordower (Environment Deputy, LA County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath);Can We Still Build Big Things? Part 1 — Lessons from CHPE (Gold)
Moderator: Kathleen Brown (Partner, Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP)
Panelists: Peter Rose (Senior Director, Stakeholder Relations at Hydro Québec); Janna Sidley (Board Member, LACERS); Cameron Bard (CRO, Madison Energy Infrastructure); Orion Fulton (Associate Principal, ARUP)
10:55 AM – 11:00 AM — Break
11:00 –11:45 AM · Concurrent Sessions
Critical Minerals for the Energy Transition (Roman)
Moderator: John Shegerian (Co-Founder, Chairman/CEO, ERI)
Panelists: Steve Schell (CPO, SolGrapH, Inc.); Kevin Kammerzell (VP, Stantec)Data Center Water Reality — Closed Loop vs. Real Cost (Corinthian)
Moderator: Jim Kelly (Director, S&C Electric)
Panelists: Brianna Daniels (VP, Stantec); Tasha Harvey (Associate Principal, ARUP); Tomo Kumahira (Co-Founder &CEO, WaterOne.ai); Adrian Hightower (Strategic Sustainability Partnerships Program Manager, MWDSC)Automation & the Future of Mobility (Grecian)
Moderator: Billy Riggs (Professor, Director, USF)
Panelists: Phil Recht (Partner, Mayer Brown LLP); Adam Lane (Public Policy Manager, Waymo); Daniel Eppstein (Head of Partnerships, CoMotion)Can We Still Build Big Things? Part 2 — Private Dollars (Gold)
Moderator: Kathleen Brown (Partner, Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP)
Panelists: Romi Kadri (Managing Partner, Levelized); Andrea Ambriz (GM, Exposition Park); Tom Soto (Founder & CEO, SAS Earth Energy Services); John Keisler (CEO & Managing Partner, Sunstone Economic Development); Lauren Faber O’Connor (Partner, Lowercarbon Capital); Ben York (Applications Manager, EPRI), Ariel Fan (GreenWealth Energy)By-Invitation Roundtable: Coordinating Load Flexibility for an Affordable Grid Future — 11:00 AM (begins) (Moroccan)
Chair: Arnab Pal (Executive Director, Deploy Action)Water Charrette — 11:35 AM (begins) (T)
11:50 AM–12:35 PM · Concurrent Sessions
SB 905 — Getting the Most from What We've Already Paid For (Roman)
Moderator: Arnab Pal (Executive Director, Deploy Action)
Panelists: Andrew McAllister (Commissioner, CEC); Tim Hade (Co-Founder, Brightfield AI); Julia Pyper (VP, Goodleap); Nadia Vogt (Associate, Senior Project Manager, Stantec); Gerro Prinsloo (Sales Director, AlumaPower Corp.); Minh Le (General Manager, Energy / Environment, LA County ISD)Data Center Siting & Permitting — Getting to Yes (Corinthian)
Moderator: Joe Sullivan (Director of Energy Solutions, IBEW)
Panelists: Noemi Gallardo (Commissioner, CEC); Tasha Harvey (Associate Principal, ARUP); Edgar Khalatian (Partner, Mayer Brown, LLP)V2G — Finally Ready for Prime Time? (Grecian)
Moderator: Jim Kelly (Director, S&C Electric)
Panelists: David Jacot (AGM & Executive Director of Distributed Energy Solutions, LADWP); Larry Chung (VP, SCE); Tiya Gordon (Co-Founder & COO, it’s electric); Tim O’Connor (Executive Director & Ratepayer Advocate, OPA, City of LA)Building a WildFire Resilience Work Force in LA (Cordoban)
Moderator: Larry Frank (Sr Advisor to Mayor Karen Bass)
Panelist: Nurit Katz (Chief Sustainability Officer, UCLA; VP Board of Water and Power Commissioners, LADWP); Robert Barna (Battalion Chief, City of Los Angeles); Devon Zatorski (Principal Project Coordinator, City of Los Angeles); Veronica Davey (Director, Chrysalis); Chris Caines (Sr Project Director, Resilience Force)
1:00-1:10 PM · Lunch Served (Crystal ballroom)
Introduction Remarks: Stephen Cheung (President & CEO, LAEDC)
Special Remarks: Tamotsu Saito (Chairman, NEDO)
1:15–1:45 PM · LUNCH PLENARY 1: Energy, AI & the Grid (Crystal Ballroom)
Moderator: Lauren Faber (Partner, Lowercarbon Capital)
Panelist: Robert Piascik (SVP, CIO & CTO, NYPA); Remi Raphael (CAIO, EPRI); Udi Ganani (VP, EIS Council)
1:45–2:25 PM · LUNCH PLENARY 2: Scaling an Affordability Agenda (Crystal Ballroom)
Moderator: Jim Kelly (Director, S&C Electric)
Panelists: Noemi Gallardo (Commissioner, CEC); Robert Hertzberg (Member Board of Directors, FPH2); Ted Bardacke (CEO, Clean Power Alliance)
2:25–2:45 PM · Public/Private Partnerships: Rebuilding Fire-Scorched Palisades and Altadena (Crystal Ballroom)
Facilitator: Jessica Lall (Managing Director, CBRE)
Guests: Rick Caruso (Founder & Executive Chairman, Caruso); Christine Kwon (Director, Department of Angels)
2:50–3:35 PM · Concurrent Sessions
Operate Today, Transform for Tomorrow — Infrastructure Balancing & Behind-the-Meter Gas (Roman)
Moderator: Jim Kelly (Director, S&C Electric)
Panelists: Nate Taylor (Director, SoCal Gas); Nadia Vogt (Associate, Senior Project Manager, Stantec)Investing in Nature-Based Solutions — Valuing Ecosystem Services for California's Future (Grecian)
Moderator: Miguel Luna (Chair, Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy; CEO Urban Semillas)
Panelists: Nurit Katz (Chief Sustainability Officer, UCLA; VP Board of Water and Power Commissioners, LADWP); Eileen Alduenda (Council for Watershed Health); Ed Parsons (Faculty Director, Emmett Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, UCLA); Jennifer Norris (Executive Director, Wildlife Conservation Board); Ignacio Fernandez (Sr Policy Advisor, The Climate Registry); Geneva Thompson (Deputy Secretary of Tribal Affairs, CA Natural Resources Agency)EV Market Momentum — Pullbacks and Progress (Corinthian)
Moderator: Ruben Aronin (Senior Principal, Better World Group)
Panelists: Alycia Gilde (Fmr Sr Advisor for Transportation to the White House; CSO LACISD); Tiya Gordon (Co-Founder & COO, it’s electric); Phil Recht (Partner, Mayer Brown LLP)Green Capital: Financing & Policy to Scale Innovation (Gold)
Moderator: Kathleen Brown (Partner, Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP)
Panelists: Anil Tammineedi (Partner, Angeleno Group); Lauren Faber O’Connor (Partner, Lowercarbon Capital); Romi Kadri (Managing Partner, Levelized)By Invitation Roundtable: Scaling Heat Pump Deployment — SoCal's $40M Investment Plan — 2:30 PM - 4:30 PM (Moroccan)
Facilitator: Ross Zelen (Chief Committee Consultant, Joint Legislative Committee on Climate Change Policies)
3:40–4:25 PM · Concurrent Sessions
Solar and Battery Storage — Getting the Policies Right (Roman)
Moderator: Eliot Abel (SVP, Corporate Clean Energy Solutions, Pivot Energy)
Panelists: Cameron Bard (CRO, Madison Energy Infrastructure); Haresh Kamath (Director for Cross-Cutting Technologies and Solutions, EPRI); Martin Howell (Associate Principal, ARUP); Violet Flocks (Associate, Mayer Brown LLP); Howard Chang (CEO, Ava Community Energy)AI for Water & Energy — Cyber Resiliency & Continuity of Operations (Grecian)
Moderator: Joone Kim-Lopez (GM/CEO, Moulton Niguel Water District)
Panelists: Jeff Berk (Principal, ARUP); Robert Piascik (SVP, CIO & CTO, NYPA); Udi Ganani (VP, EIS Council); Norma Grubb (CIO, CAIO, LADWP); Tasha Harvey (Associate Principal, ARUP)Intelligent Urban Infrastructure — Sepulveda Corridor Case Study (Corinthian)
Moderator: Eli Lipmen (Executive Director, Move LA)
Panelists: Hilary Norton (Executive Director, FASTLinkDTLA); Kristen Torres Pawling (Deputy Chief of Staff, Office of Councilwoman Yaroslavsky); Lamont Cobb (Director of Planning & Land Use, CD6)LAEDC/WTC International Cleantech Pitch Session (Tiffany Room)
Moderator: William Powles (Senior Director of International Trade, World Trade Center Los Angeles)
Judges: Gunjan Siroya (Chief Solutions Officer, Larta Institute); Olivia Gray-Rodgers (Director of Trade for the Southwest U.S. & Hawaii at the British Consulate General, Los Angeles)CONTINUED: By Invitation Roundtable: Scaling Heat Pump Deployment — SoCal's $40M Investment Plan — 2:30 PM - 4:30 PM (Moroccan)
Facilitator: Ross Zelen (Chief Committee Consultant, Joint Legislative Committee on Climate Change Policies)
4:30–5:15 PM · Concurrent Sessions
Speed to Power — Get the Power You Need, When You Need It (Roman)
Moderator: Victoria Harmon (CEO & Founder, VL Harmon Advisors)
Panelists: Dr Kelly Sanders (Associate Professor, USC); Gerro Prinsloo (Sales Director, AlumaPower Corp.); Andrew Grinalds (Co-Founder & COO, Critical Loop); Nasser Usman (Co-Founder & CEO, GridGPT); Rachit Khare (Founder & CEO, Concept X)Advanced Generation — Fusion (Grecian)
Moderator: Bob Powell (Professor, UC Davis; Science and Technology Committee Chair, Lawrence Livermore National Security)
Panelists: Richard Magee (VP, TAE Technologies, Inc); Robin Wong (Industry & Partnerships Lead, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory); Ed Moses (Founder & CEO, Longview Fusion Energy Systems)Heavy Duty Trucking: The Complementary Role of Battery Electric and Hydrogen (Corinthian)
Moderator: Terry O’Day (COO & Founder, In-Charge Energy)
Panelists: Aaron Lapsley (CTO, Hyroad); Reb Guthrie (Principal, Stantec)WTC Consular Panel (Tiffany Room)
Moderator: Stephen Cheung (President & CEO, LAEDC)
Consulate Generals: Japan, Canada, India, and Germany
6:30 PM
Canada / Germany / Quebec / VX Hosted Dinner (By Invitation)
Program subject to change. Check back on verdexchange.org for the latest updates.
TUESDAY, JUNE 2
7:15 AM Doors Open
8:00 AM Welcome Day 2 [Crystal Ballroom]
David Abel, Chairman VX2026
8:10 AM Opening Remarks:Efrain Escobedo (President & CEO, Center for Nonprofit Management); Eric Garcetti (former US Ambassador to India & former Mayor of Los Angeles)
8:15–9:00 AM · Infrastructure & The Olympics: Preparation, Execution & Legacy (Crystal Ballroom)
Moderator: Andrea Ambriz (GM, Exposition Park)
Panelists: Eric Garcetti (former US Ambassador to India & former Mayor of Los Angeles); Marcel Porras (Deputy Chief Innovation Officer, LA Metro); Eddie Alvarez (Council Representative, LA Area, LA/OC Building Trades)
9:10–10:00 AM · Concurrent Sessions
Affordable Housing: Is the Model Broken? (Corinthian)
Moderator: Rick Cole (Councilmember, City of Pasadena)
Panelists: Robert Hertzberg (Sr. Advisor, Mission Possible Partnership; CA Senate Majority Leader Emeritus); Dan Weinstein (Partner, CTI Housing); Ted Grove (Residential Land Development Sector Leader North America, Stantec)Wildfire Liability and Insurance — Who Pays? (Grecian)
Moderator: Jules Radcliff (Attorney at Law, Radcliff Fairman, LLP)
Panelists: Joy Chen (Executive Director, Every Fire Survivor’s Network); Maggie Messerschmidt (Resiliance Associate, ARUP)India and California Climate Tech Collaboration (Cordoban)
Moderator: Anil Tammineedi (Partner, Angeleno Group)
Panelists: K J Srinivasa (Consul General of India, Los Angeles); Ambassador Eric Garcetti (Frmr US Ambassador to India); Gunjan Bagla (CEO, Amritt, Inc), Mason Rush (EA, CBRE)Session 1: Decarbonizing Ports, Maritime Uses & the Global Supply Chain (Tiffany Room)
Moderator: Lex Heslin (CEO, Enso Infrastructure)
Panelists: Noel Hacegaba (CEO, Port of Long Beach); Gene Seroka (Executive Director, Port of Los Angeles); Yuhei Sasahara (Managing Director, NYK Group Americas); Alisa Kreynes (Director of Ports and Shipping, C40 Cities); Jason Rondou (Interim COO, LADWP)
10:10–11:00 AM · Concurrent Sessions
Resiliency Hubs & Building Decarbonization (Corinthian)
Moderator: Beckie Menten (California Director, Building Decarbonization Coalition)
Panelists: Andrew McAllister (Commissioner, CEC); Randall Winston (Deputy Mayor of Infrastructure, City of Los Angeles); Jonathan Parfrey (Executive Director, Climate Resolve); Sahar Abbaszadeh (Associate Principal, ARUP)Ports: Zero-Emission Operations by 2035 — What's the Real Plan? (Grecian)
Moderator: Mary Nichols (Professor, Institute of the Environment, UCLA)
Panelists: Randall Winston (Deputy Mayor of Infrastructure, City of Los Angeles); David Libatique (Deputy Executive Director, Stakeholder Engagement, Port of Los Angeles); Christopher McGrath (Principal, Stantec)Can CA Create a Truly Circular Economy? (Roman)
Moderator: Coby Skye (Executive Director, San Luis Obispo County Integrated Waste Management Authority)
Panelists: Zoe Heller (Director, CalRecycle); Emily Coven (California Executive Director, Circular Action Alliance); Heidi Sanborn (Founder & Executive Director / CEO, National Stewardship Action Council); Erin Rowland (General Superintendent, Waste Diversion & Recycling, City of Los Angeles); Mike Caprio (Director of Government Affairs-California, Republic Services)Session 2: Japan's Global Leadership in Hydrogen & Ammonia Project Deployment (Tiffany Room)
Moderator: Takehito Yokoo (CEO, Jozen Power)
Panelists: Daishu Hara (Sr Director, Hydrogen and Ammonia Department, NEDO Japan); Jackie Birdsall (Sr Program Manager, Toyota North America); Aya Izawa (CN Business Development Assistant Manager, NGK Corporation); Yuma Taniguchi (Business Development Manager, Nikkiso CE&IG)
11:10–11:50 AM · Concurrent Sessions
Making Power Happen — In an Era of AI, Finance, Regulatory, & Political Headwinds (Grecian)
Moderator: Tom Soto (Founder & CEO, SAS Earth Energy Services)
Panelists: Angelina Galiteva (Founder & Board President, Renewables 100 Policy Institute); Isaac Segovia (Member Board of Trustees, California Science Center); Rachit Khare (Founder & CEO, Concept X); Nasser Usman (Co-Founder & CEO, GridGPT); Elias Rashmawi (VP, Stantec)Breaking the Toxic Cycle of Hazardous Products (Roman)
Moderator: Heidi Sanborn (Executive Director, Stewardship Action Foundation)
Panelists: John Shegerian (Co-Founder, Chairman/CEO, ERI); Chris Sheppard (Principal Engineer, LA County Public Works); Tom Koutroulis (Director, County of Orange, OC Waste & Recycling)The War on Wildfire: AI, Autonomous Systems, and Breakthrough Technologies Defending Human Life and Critical Infrastructure (Corinthian)
Moderator: Joe Boystak (Chairman, CEO & Co-Founder, Balboa Geolocation, Inc)
Panelists: Peter Ambler (VP, Pano AI); Andrew Wordin (Battalion Chief, LACFD); Ed Chow (Civil Programs, Manager, JPL); Hamed Noori (Founder & CEO, SenseNet)Session 3: U.S. Hydrogen & Ammonia Market Reality — Which Business Models Are Working? (Tiffany Room)
Moderator: Lex Heslin (CEO, Enso Infrastructure)
Panelists: Jason Caudle (CEO, First Public Hydrogen); Ricky Sakai (SVP, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries America); Aaron Lapsley (CTO, Hyroad Energy); John Flory (President, Clean Hydrogen Buyers Alliance)
12:00 PM · Lunch Served (Crystal Ballroom)
12:30-1:15 PM · Fireside Chat: Great Power Comes with Great Responsibilities: Energy Infrastructure & the AI Economy (Crystal Ballroom)
Moderator: Rebecca Lee (Director of Government Affairs, Western US, NRG)
Panelists: Senator Ben Allen (California State Senate)*; Lauren Faber O’Connor (Partner, Lowercarbon Capital); Robert Hertzberg (Former CA Senate Majority Leader Emeritus)
1:15-1:45 PM · Indigenous Peoples: Full Partners in the Infrastructure Transition (Crystal Ballroom)
Moderator: Jim Kelly (Director, S&C Electric)
Panelists: Johnny Hernandez (Vice Chairman, Yuhaaviatam of San Manuel Nation), Luticia Miller (VP Project Development, First Nations Major Projects Coalition)
1:45–2:15 PM · Post Luncheon: The Innovators — Breakthrough Ideas That Could Change the Game (Crystal Ballroom)
2:20–3:05 PM · Concurrent Sessions
The Future of Long-Duration Energy Storage (Corinthian)
Moderator: Haresh Kamath (Director for Cross-Cutting Technologies and Solutions, EPRI)
Panelists: Andrew McAllister (Commissioner, CEC), Violet Flocks (Associate, Mayer Brown LLP); Nate Kirchhofer (Co-Founder & CEO, BioZen)Workforce in the 21st Century (Roman)
Moderator: Ben Stapleton (CEO, US Green Building Council)
Panelists: Carolyn Hull (President & CEO, CM Hull Strategic Advisors); Marcela Oliva (Professor of Architecture and Environmental Design, LATTC); Board Member, US Green Building Council); Peter Rose (Senior Director, Stakeholder Relations at Hydro Québec); Evan Birenbaum (Sr Technical Executive, EPRI) Building Decarbonization : Hard Truths & Unintended Consequences (Grecian)
Moderator: Jim Kelly (Director, S&C Electric)
Panelists: Mary Nichols (Professor, Institute of the Environment, UCLA); Sahar Abbaszadeh (Associate Principal, ARUP); Diana Tang (Assistant General Manager, Long Beach Utilities)
By-Invitation: Palisades / Altadena Building Back Better
Session 4: Hydrogen Plus Alternative Energy Solutions for Backup Power & Resiliency - 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM (Tiffany Room)
Moderator: Lorraine Paskett (Chief Operating Officer, First Public Hydrogen)
Panelists: Timothy Sasseen (Manager, Hydrogen Solutions, American Honda Motor Company); Tanya Peacock (Managing Director, EcoEngineers); Tomohiro Fujita (Section Chief, Namie Town, Fukushima); James Kast (General Manager of Hydrogen, Iwatani Corporation of America)
3:10–3:45 PM · Concurrent Sessions
VX2027 What Should Be on the Agenda (Moroccan)
Facilitator: David AbelStorage-First Homes: The New Architecture for Affordable Energy Resilience (Cordoban)
Moderator: Matt Horton (VP, Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation)
Panelists: Vamsi Kumar Kotla (Founder & CEO, ReMo Homes); George Holmes (Exec-Chairman & CEO, Stormentum); Lujuana Medina (Environmental Initiatives Division Manager, County of Los Angeles)CONTINUED: By-Invitation: Palisades / Altadena Building Back Better (Crystal Ballroom)
Session 5: Global Hydrogen & Ammonia Market Reality — How Europe & Asia Are Filling the Vacuum & Developing Energy Security - 3:10 PM – 4:10 PM (Tiffany Room)
Moderator: Robert Hertzberg (Former CA Senate Majority Leader Emeritus)
Panelists: Paul Nelson (Managing Partner, Saoradh Enterprise Partners); David Yanagisawa (Senior Manager, Mitsui and Co. Ltd.); Eugene Litvinov (Director, Energy & Hydrogen, Hyundai Motor North America); Shailesh Topiwala (Director, Robert Bosch LLC)
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 3
7:00 AM · Doors Open
8:00–8:15 AM Welcome (CB)
David Abel (Chairman, VerdeXchange)
8:20–8:35 AM Welcome (CB)
Tim McOsker (Councilmember, 15th District)
8:30–10:00 AM · PLENARY Working Harbor Tour — San Pedro Bay Ports (By Invitation)
Joined by Port of Los Angeles and Long Beach Leadership
11:00–11:10 AM AltaSea Remarks (By Invitation)
Terry Tamminen (President & CEO, AltaSea)
11:10–11:50 AM Featured Remarks + Panel: Blue Economy & AltaSea (By Invitation)
Moderator: Brian Goldstein (Executive Director, Energy Independence Now)
Panelists: Mike Galvin (Director of Waterfront and Commercial Real Estate, Port of Los Angeles); Mark Jurisic (Chairman, International Longshore & Warehouse Union); Ian MacMillan (Assistant Deputy Executive Officer, South Coast Air Quality Management District)